Chattanooga City Councilor Chris Anderson dropped by the HRC offices on Monday while in town for the National League of Cities conference.

Councilmember Anderson discussed the upcoming August referendum on his city's Extended Benefits and Non-Discrimination Ordinance. The City Council passed the ordinance last November, but it is put on hold pending the outcome of the August referendum.

The ordinance would provide domestic partnership benefits for city employees and add sexual orientation and gender identity to the city's non-discrimination policies for city employees and would make Chattanooga the third Tennessee city to offer such protections.

It was a pleasure to meet an openly gay elected official who is making a difference in his city.

HRC's Municipal Equality Index provides a roadmap for cities and towns looking to adopt best practices on LGBT inclusion. The 2013 edition of the Index rated 291 cities across the country. For more information or to read the report, please visit www.hrc.org/mei. Chattanooga's scorecard is available here.